False Accusations
by DigiExpert
Summary: She looked miserably down at her hands, trying to avoid any and all eye contact. How any of this had occurred had been beyond her... On top of that would anyone believe her story?


**Two things. First, this was written for Judamacaby, as a request and because of her. She ended up spending some time in jail yesterday, and like Kyouko, the reason was rather ridiculous. However, public forums are not the place to discuss such things. Second, this fic references Return. I highly recommend reading that story if you've not already.**

She looked miserably down at her hands, trying to avoid any and all eye contact. How any of this had occurred had been beyond her. The noise and light around her seemed like far too much. She wanted to go and escape from everything. She needed solitude. She needed to be away from the accusatory stares, and the pointed comments.

Mere meters away, she knew that the final paperwork was being completed. It wouldn't be more than a quarter of an hour before she would be out of this place. Her legs itched to take off and run. However, if she did that now, she'd only end up in more trouble.

More trouble. That was a good one. She hadn't even caused the trouble in the first place, not this time around. She had only been trying to help. Load of good that had done her. Help someone out, spend a couple of days being detained. Society was fucking pleasant like that. All the times she'd actually committed petty theft and never been caught were laughable compared to this. She wondered what had been told on her behalf. _Probably lies to make them seem like the innocent ones. Damn idiots. Of course they'd make themselves seem good. _

She was suddenly hauled to her feet. Looking up, she saw the other coming toward her, the look on the woman's face unreadable. _Do you know? Will you believe me?_ she wondered. Granted, the other one was known for lecturing her from time to time on the downfalls of thievery and how she should stop since she no longer needed any of that to survive. And she had. Her history preceded her though.

"Let's go, Kyouko." Her tone was unreadable as Kyouko fell into step beside her, shoving her hands into her jacket pockets.

"Mami I—"

"Don't." Mami shook her head and continued walking, not looking at Kyouko.

Kyouko scowled, staring daggers into the floor as they passed through the heavy glass doors. "It's not what you think. Really—"

Mami turned and faced her, a stern look upon her face. "I don't know what to think, Kyouko. I only know what they told me. We're not discussing this here in the street. Not now."

"You don't believe me, do you? You don't fucking be—"

"_Kyouko._" Kyouko had never heard her name said so angrily.

_I should have known. I should have fucking known. She wouldn't believe me. She'd believe a bunch of cops over me. She should know me better than this._ Kyouko fumed continuing to berate Mami in her mind. She didn't want to wait and see what Mami would do next. She was probably taking Kyouko home so that she could get her things and get out. She didn't really need the things she had accumulated over the time she'd stayed, did she? Lost in thought, Kyouko didn't realize that she'd stopped walking at the bottom of the stairs of the apartment building.

"Coming?" asked Mami, who had climbed halfway up the first flight of stairs.

Now was her chance to back away and run. She could leave Mami behind and not have to worry about seeing her again. If she were lucky, she could catch a train quickly. She'd done it before, so why not do it again? "Yeah." Kyouko was surprised to hear the word tumble from her mouth, and even more surprised when she slowly followed after. She chided herself for acting like a fool, but couldn't make her body do otherwise.

She closed the door behind her as she entered the apartment, leaning heavily against it. Kyouko crossed her arms and used one of her feet as a door prop to keep her balance. "You want me to go, don't you?" she asked coldly. "I can grab my stuff and go. I won't stay where I'm not wanted." She gazed steadily at Mami.

Instead of getting the answer she had assumed, she saw Mami's face drop. "Why do you think that?"

"I don't know, Mami. Maybe the way you treated me all the way home? I know you think I did it." Kyouko felt the desire to stomp and point and shake her fists around in the air. She couldn't' control the rage any longer.

"I don't know what you did, Kyouko. I didn't want to discuss it in the middle of the street or some café either, as you seemed so intent on doing. And now you're assuming that I want you gone. You're assuming that I'm like everyone else who has ever turned on you before." She turned away from Kyouko. "Did you ever think I wanted to talk to you in private about it? That I wanted to hear your story first because I didn't believe the little information I had been told?" Mami's voice had raised, something rarely ever heard.

Her footsteps sounded heavily on the floor as she moved further into the living room before taking a seat on the couch. "If you think you know what I want so much, then go. You're right. I don't want to be around someone who assumes what my words and actions will be before I have a chance to tell them."

Kyouko could only stare at the back of Mami's head, unable to think of any kind of decent reply. Perhaps she'd misunderstood Mami's intentions earlier. However, she also hated the feeling of guilt that settled over her, and even more so the fact that she would have to admit her fault to Mami. She battled back and forth with herself, trying to decide what to do. She could run away, or she could own up to her mistake.

_Damn it… I can't leave. She knows it too. She fucking knows it._ Kyouko sighed and pushed off from the door, making her way to the couch slowly. She took a seat, leaving a large gap between her and Mami. She couldn't bring herself to look at her. Instead, she stared straight ahead, arms resting in her lap. "I didn't do anything wrong." It wasn't the best start, but it would do. She waited for a reply from Mami, but received none. Mami was still displeased with her behavior.

_I guess I have to just go for it._ "I was at the convenience store. I wanted to buy some snacks. I was hungry and I had money saved. I didn't steal this time." She paused, but there was still no response. "This woman pushing a stroller passed me when I was looking at pocky. She was on her way out. I heard something hit the floor, and looked down. It was some kind of pill bottle so I picked it up. She was already gone. I ran out of the store after her."

"How—"

"Let me finish first." Kyouko took a deep breath. "I probably shouldn't have waved the damn thing around and shouted so much. I might as well have painted a "Look at this fucking idiot" sign on myself. Cops came over and said I was being a disturbance. They took one look at the bottle in my hand, and next thing I knew they'd cuffed me."

"And that's how you ended up in jail a few days?"

"Yeah." Kyouko nodded miserably. "I was doing a good deed and look where it got me. I even got strip searched and shit. Trying to find that woman was pointless. It got me nowhere." She stole a glance at Mami, who still wasn't looking at her. First the arrest, and now this. Unlike the former, she was definitely guilty of this. "I'll just… go now." She began to rise from the couch.

Mami placed a hand on her arm and pushed her down. "No, stay."

"…You sure?"

"I am. The past few days have been hell for me too. I didn't know where you were until I got that call and then I didn't know what to think. I couldn't find out any information on you, and so I just worried." She looked at Kyouko finally, and Kyouko saw the tears threatening to fall.

_Why is she crying… wait. Oh. OH. _Realization dawned on Kyouko. "You thought I had left again, didn't you?"

Mami nodded and the tears began to fall. Kyouko pulled her into her arms and held her close. She gently rubbed circles on her back, trying to console her. "I didn't leave you… It was all just a big mistake. I tried to do something good and got in trouble. Funny huh? I used to steal all the time and not get busted at all and yet, I get busted over this. Life's funny like that."

"I went to the train station," mumbled Mami. "And I checked the schedules. I patrolled late into the night, looking for you."

"Stop that. Don't beat yourself up. I'm here and I'm gonna stay." Kyouko grinned. "And no more time in jail for me. Do you know they actually serve really healthy food? Drove me freakin' crazy. I needed some junk food."

That got a small giggle out of Mami, and Kyouko smiled. It was good to be home. Most of all, it was good to be with someone who gave her the chance to tell her side of the story, even if she accused them of doing otherwise.


End file.
